Refigured

Abstract

This collection of poetry investigates the integral components of identity. The poems strive to explore and question the intersections of faith, race, gender, and sexuality through the stories of a diverse group of women throughout a variety of texts. The texts explored cover a wide range that includes Biblical narratives, folk tales, slave narratives, and the history of one of the earliest African American female poets, Phillis Wheatley. The poems born from engaging with these women’s stories grapple with an array of issues, chief among them is the desire to understand what it means to know and be known. What it means to look closely and be seen.